Eldritch Horror Theatre

"I was only guessing. For one, the targeting was far too precise and singular."

Facing the Witch's testing counter-question, Fu Qian didn't keep her in suspense. He quickly shared the theory he'd been forming.

"The moment I arrived here, I confirmed you were the only one inside."

"Rather than believe it was randomly grabbing powerful creatures for fuel, I leaned toward the idea that you had to be special to this masterpiece."

"Another reason for that conclusion was your reaction. Although the Law holds an exalted status, even I could find ways to evade and resist it. You, however, put up far too little of a struggle. It defied common sense."

"How clever!"

The Witch had clearly been listening intently, her smile deepening as he spoke.

Naturally, alongside the praise, she didn't forget to reach out and rub Fu Qian's head.

"First off, you guessed right... Now, care to guess why I'm special?"

Fu Qian wasn't about to bicker over her seizing every opportunity to take liberties. He focused on the challenge instead.

"But you once mentioned a figure you called Mother. And when you provided the paint for me, you said that 'as powers from the same source, there is no fundamental difference.'"

"So I wondered—when it comes to the Law reappearing after all these years, could this bloodline be what it locked onto?"

"And considering that your 'Mother' died long ago, you naturally became the target."

"But there's a small contradiction in that. You said she was hunted down, and her blood was used to paint the Painting World."

"That seems to clash a bit with her identity as the source of the Law's power."

While smoothly voicing his thoughts, Fu Qian hadn't forgotten to adjust his vocal cords.

By the time he finished, his voice had already recovered quite nicely.

"You remembered that quite diligently."

The Witch looked quite satisfied with his performance.

So much so that, alongside the praise, she actually seemed to resist the urge to pat his head again.

"The claim about her being hunted down originally came from the Natives of the Painting World. Its credibility was never that high to begin with."

"I also lean toward the theory that she was the former source of the Law's power."

A tentacle extended elegantly, pointing toward the continuously withering vortex of the Law.

"It's very strange. Deep within its core foundation, a certain part seems to have been designed specifically for me. You can simply understand it as a restriction preventing me from harming it in any way."

"Besides that, after arriving here, I really did find Mother's aura."

"I can understand how you felt."

With his guess confirmed, Fu Qian marveled inwardly at the situation the Witch described.

To rely on someone else's power, yet still be able to impose such an unreasonable reverse restriction—it truly defied common sense.

He couldn't help but feel there was some unspoken mystery behind it all.

"So you chose to leave behind only one gift."

Fu Qian was naturally referring to the Dark Moon Ring.

"This was far beyond anything you could fight against," the Witch sighed softly.

"Even now, I don't know how you managed it."

"You could call it the power of a blank mind."

Fu Qian had no intention of explaining further.

"But looking at you now, could it be that the part restricting you was exactly what I destroyed?"

"It wasn't exactly a coincidence. You destroyed far more than just a little bit."

"It's quite obvious that you've grown considerably during this time..."

As she spoke, the Witch finally couldn't resist the urge to pat his head again, but to her dismay, she grasped thin air.

The shapeless head in her embrace had actually twisted away. In just this short amount of time, her Templar Knight had quietly recovered a bit of control over his body.

"You really have grown fast... Oh, right, I also picked up some things."

Shaking her head with a hint of regret, the Witch's eyes quickly lit up. With a wave of her hand, she tossed a pile of items in front of him.

The Handbell, the handgun, the Head Cage...

Fu Qian was undoubtedly familiar with every single one.

There was even more than one ring among them.

It was perfectly normal to lose things when drunk.

Considering the Witch's earlier description, gathering all of these must have taken quite a bit of effort.

...

"You have quite an interesting collection."

Returning the items to their rightful owner, the Witch, clearly in high spirits, even threw in a casual compliment.

"Feel free to take whatever you like."

Fu Qian doubled down on the dynamic, straight-up adopting the tone of a master handing out rewards.

"Really?"

Her pleasant surprise looked perfectly natural as the Witch genuinely began picking through them without hesitation.

Even though he was still being held in her arms, Fu Qian maintained his generous front, showing no awkwardness about the situation.

"Is this one alright?"

Truly worthy of being the Pope, the Witch easily overcame any indecisiveness and quickly pointed to something glittering.

The Blasphemous Embrace. She really knew how to pick them.

Fu Qian was momentarily surprised by her choice.

Granted, its design was indeed more aesthetically pleasing, but this item was also the reward he'd obtained after entering the Painting World for the first time.

It was also the tool that had helped the Dark Moon appear and establish a connection.

Was her eye really that sharp?

"You may."

Even so, Fu Qian didn't hesitate.

"Thank you."

Hearing this, the Witch stared at him for a few seconds before breaking into a bright smile. She really did pick up the Blasphemous Embrace.

However, she didn't put it away immediately. Instead, she placed it against Fu Qian's body, and a burst of flowing light flashed across the bow.

This was...

Once the flowing light dissipated, Fu Qian realized something new had appeared in his mind.

"I just want this," the Witch said with a beaming smile, only then putting the Blasphemous Embrace away.

Of course, from now on, it would be nothing more than a visually stunning bow.

The power originally attached to it—a power sufficient to blaspheme the sun—had already been directly transferred to him in a wondrous manner.

...

"The collapse of this thing will also carry over into the Real World, won't it?"

Marveling at the Pope's thoughtfulness didn't hinder Fu Qian's thirst for knowledge.

"Isn't it a little too late to start caring about that now?"

Gathering up the rest of the items for Fu Qian, the Witch asked with a half-smile.

"Regardless of what those people's true nature is, or whether they were deceived, didn't you consider before coming here that your actions would likely cause the destruction of countless wills? That it would be a grievous sin?"

"I thought about it. But anyone who knows me is well aware that the phrase 'grievous sin' doesn't even begin to describe me."

Faced with such a soul-searching interrogation, Fu Qian remained completely at ease. There wasn't the slightest hint of shame in his voice.

"Besides, I trust your judgment."

"Oh?"

The Witch didn't seem entirely sure what he meant.

"You said this was a ruined apocalypse. Therefore, no matter how stable it might look, I believe that kind of Laerdin will only vanish in the blink of an eye."

"...Not bad at all. Even I haven't been able to hold onto that belief all the time."

Fu Qian's words made the Witch fall silent for a moment, but she soon spoke again, even offering a suggestion.

"Would you like to go take a look?"

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